From start to finish, the girls varsity soccer team never walked out onto the field and gave it 99%, but instead walked out on that field with loads of confidence and gave it 115% each and every game. While this season ended in a way they had not hoped, the girls ended with a record of 9-1. While winning their section, the girls could not pull through with a quarterfinal win against Our Lady of Sacred Heart (OLSH) on Oct. 28 at Bulldog Stadium to move on in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) Class 1A playoffs. 

This season was unlike any other since there were many restrictions involving COVID-19. Masks had to be worn most of the time and daily temperature checks and COVID forms had to be filled out. However, these girls looked past the restrictions and were glad they got the opportunity to step back out on the field without their season being taken away. 

During the beginning of October, the girls had some players on the team that were exposed to the virus, so the school took the precaution to make the girls quarantine for a week. During the week off, the girls could not practice and were forced to reschedule games that were supposed to be played during that week.

“Every week we played hoping that our season wouldn’t get shut down,” freshman Morgan Keller said. 

The girls never had the opportunity to settle down and get used to a rhythm going as once it got to the point they were feeling comfortable with each other, they were forced to take a break.

“This season was one of the weirdest ever with the fact that it had a lot of starts and stops. As soon as things would seem like they were going well, we would have to quarantine and take a break, which made it hard to get a good flow happening throughout the season,” junior Renae Mohrbacher said. 

While some girls will hang up their cleats for the year and move on to their next sport, many players on the girls soccer team plan to continue working hard to get better in the off-season. Whether it be playing on a travel team, going to local or college camps or just training in their free time, these girls take one step further to reach their goals. 

“I plan to start off-season conditioning early and train on and off of the ball to prepare and make sure I am ready for what next season has to offer,” Keller said.

“How I am planning to get better during the off-season is by playing a ton more soccer with my club team to work on stuff that we needed improvement on this year. I also think that one thing I could work on is staying positive as much as possible and being intentional and helpful with the people who need it, ” Mohrbacher said. 

While college recruitment has been very slow this year due to the virus, senior and captain Jessica Scheel committed earlier this season to continue her education and soccer career at Wilson College in Chambersburg, Pa. Scheel plans to get a bachelor’s degree in nursing. 

“I plan to work harder than I ever have. It will take a lot of work that I am not used to, but I am ready for the challenge. Over the 4 years of playing the diversity of coaches, I have had makes it easier for me to adjust to the new coaches and the different styles of coaches,” Scheel said. 

While the season was unlike any other, the girls still were able to continue the battle to stay on top, even with drawing in some pretty special highlights and memories. 

“My biggest highlight this season was during our home game against OLSH. We were down 1-0 and with less than 10 minutes left in the second half, I carried the ball down the sidelines and crossed the ball to Julz [Julia] Mohrbacher, who scored, to tie the game up. I feel that was the spark we needed to carry us to the win in double overtime,” Keller said. 

While being on the field with your team that feels like family is very special and something only a few gets to experience, it’s not always about what happens on the field that makes the team who they are, but it’s what happens outside the white lines that make a team stand out among the others. Scheel explained how she has many favorite memories on the field, like making it to states her sophomore year. However, her most favorite memories have been with the team off the field.

“One season highlight for me this year was actually off the field. It was our pre-playoff spaghetti dinner. This tradition started before I was in high school, but this year was definitely the highlight of my year. The team gets together right before playoffs and have a spaghetti dinner and spends time together and bonds before the stress of playoffs. It is my favorite tradition that the Freedom Girls Soccer tradition,” Scheel said, “…the locker room talks and the locker room dances and just being with the teams off the field as well as on the field.”

The girls’ season might not have ended the way they had not hoped, but the girls have a bright future ahead as they will only be losing two key seniors, Scheel and Karissa Mercier. The team will have two big shoes to fill, but with a team full of talent, these girls will continue to battle for years to come.

“Some advice I would give them is to keep their heads up. Never hold your head and work together and stay positive,” Scheel said.